1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to strollers, and more particularly, pertains to a user interface that allows a user to control a baby stroller having one or more components which can be moved by a drive mechanism.
2. Description of Related Art
Baby strollers, also referred to as baby carriages, baby buggies, or prams, have been used to hold and transport babies and young children for many years. Early baby strollers had parts which were fixedly secured to one another such that they did not fold for compactness. More recently, baby strollers have been designed to have some parts which are movable relative to one another to allow movement of some parts of the stroller to achieve a more compact configuration when not in use. However, current strollers do not allow for movement or folding to compact configuration as desired, and are cumbersome and sometimes difficult to move between their collapsed (closed) positions and their operative (open) positions, particularly when attending to a baby or child.
A stroller which is easier to move between its collapsed and operative positions, such as one that does so upon the operation of a user interface via motorized movement, is desired. However, the challenges for designing a user interface for a stroller that opens or closes under electrical power are to make the process intuitive, easy, and fast for a user to operate, desirably with a single hand. However, the interface must also be designed so that it is difficult to be operated unintentionally, for example, when the stroller is in the trunk of the car.
Accordingly, a need exists for a user interface for a power folding stroller that is intuitive, easy, and fast for a user to operate while also being difficult to operate unintentionally.